Grand plans: Mr Bercow will call upon Silicon Valley giants to help form a 'blueprint' for the introduction of online voting

Technology giants Facebook, Google and Twitter are to help plan a digital revolution in the British democratic system, which could see people casting their votes online.

The radical plan is the brainchild of the Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow MP, who has revealed his ambition to pioneer one of the biggest shake-ups in the history of our electoral process.

In a speech to the Hansard society yesterday, Mr Bercow said he will ask leading figures from Silicon Valley technology giants such as Google and Facebook to draw up a blueprint for the implementation of digital ballots in the UK.

He will chair the first ever Speaker’s commission on 'digital democracy', which has set itself the task of modernising the voting system in a bid to boost turn-out figures and make the democratic process more inclusive.

In his speech, Mr Bercow said: 'What we are talking about here is nothing less than a Parliament version 2.0.'

Revealing plans to heighten levels of scrutiny and accountability using technology, Mr Bercow also said a new system should include 'e-dialogue' between MPs and their constituents.

He even hinted that a digital revolution could loosen current election timetables, seeing ballots become more frequent.

According to the Speaker's office, the commission will 'embrace the opportunities afforded by
the digital world to become more effective in representing the people,
making laws and scrutinising the work and performance of government.

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'It
should also consider how Parliament can become more relevant to the
increasingly diverse population it seeks to serve'.

Work will start at the beginning of next year with the aim of outlining an action plan for the implementation of the proposals by 2015.

That deadline falls in line with the 750th anniversary of the founding of Parliament.

Inclusive: According to Mr Bercow, one of the benefits of e-voting is that it will make casting a vote more convenient for those who may not be able to easily access a ballot box

The Speaker plans to use the example of Estonia to champion his cause.

The Baltic state was the first in the world to introduce internet voting. It proved a popular alternative for citizens in their 2011 ballot, with around a quarter choosing to cast their votes online.

Estonians are now able to vote digitally using just their national identity card. They can also register a vote via mobile phone with a Pin code.

The Speaker said he plans to consult global internet powers such as Facebook so that the ideas are not just those of people inside Westminster

Initial reaction to the idea of internet voting in Britain has been luke-warm from sources inside the three major parties.

One told the Independent: It may happen one day, but not yet. There would be big questions about security. Our system is one of the least corrupt, but there have been a few problems with postal voting and that highlights the potential danger of moving to online.'

But Mr Bercow said the idea of introducing the online community into the very heart of British Democracy should be 'unpredictable, potentially anarchic' and 'quite fun.'